Chapter 2

The sudden feeling caused his ears to ring and sight to blur out. Sage's stomach ached with nausea. It took moments for his entire system to adjust. First Sage's vision focused and adjusted to the low-light. The room he found himself in was unlit except from the tiny lights on the machinery. Sage was standing in the far corner of the room. By raising his hands out in front of him, he realized he was trapped in some glass container of some kind. Sage also noticed his attire. He no longer wore his black bodysuit, detailed with glowing blue circuitry. Instead he found he was wearing layers. He wore a dark pair of grey almost black pants of a rough material. Underneath a black, smooth yet tough jacket was a black, soft fabric. On his hands were gloves, fingerless as they had been like back on the grid. The clothes felt loose to the program. Sage looked around the room. The glass container he was in was large enough to fit three men. The top of it was flat like a light panel. The rest of the lab was intriguing to him. The area was rather flat. The entire walls were covered by full size interactive screens. In the corner next to the container was a large block of machinery, quietly humming with life. In the center of the room was a large interactive table. However, as amazing the level of technology was, it was still obsolete compared to what Sage was used to. At the far end of the room on the other side of the table, was a door. Sage now had his bearings, though he was completely oblivious to where he was. Sage pushed gently with his fingers on the glass in front of him. The front panel slid forward with ease then electronically slid out of his way. Sage's combat experience kicked in as he crept out of the container. The moment his foot touched the floor, the lights of the room turned on, illuminating the area. Sage stood frozen and wide-eyed for a span of fifteen seconds, his breathing grew thin as nerves fell on him again. After he was sure it was clear, Sage dared another step. Slowly he made his way to the end of the room. He turned the knob which creaked with age. After opening the door, Sage peered cautiously up a staircase, old and abandoned. He quietly climbed the stairs keeping his senses sharp incase he needed to react. Sage finally reached the top of the stairs to a dead end. To his surprise the wall before him moved out of his way, sliding to the left with a low rumble. As the doorway opened, Sage saw the room it allowed him into. The appearance was far different than the room below. It was larger and cleaner and felt much more open. The lights here were also off. Sage stepped inside the room and again to his surprise, the lights turned on. Sage jumped and darted his gaze inspecting the area. To his right, the entire wall was a window. Sage was mesmerized by the world beyond the glass. Displayed before the onlooker, was a massive city lit by the hundreds of buildings and lights from the streets far below. This world was similar to the Grid. From behind, a large thud sounded as the secret entry to the lower level lab was sealed. Sage turned around just in time to see a neon sign turn off. Sage approached a large desk with a chair behind it. Protruding vertically from the desk was a large thin glass pane. Flashing on the screen in bold red letters read INTRUSION. Sage knew at that moment he had to move. Suddenly the door to the office crashed open and five shouting men stormed in. Each wore a uniform that was dark and held a weapon of a design Sage did not know.

"Freeze don't move!" the security men shouted. As two of them aimed their handheld weapon at Sage, three of them approached him. "Hands up lets go."

"I mean no harm," Sage protested calmly. "I need to see Daniel Flynn," the program said. The guards' harsh expressions didn't change.

"I said hands up!" the guard growled. Sage did as commanded. He raised his hands over his head. his mind raced. This couldn't be good. He had come farther than any program ever dreamed, he could not fail now, but these security guards were going to be a problem. The first guard came to Sage and tried to grab his wrist. With impressive speed, Sage grabbed the guards' arm and used his other hand to grasp the guard's uniform collar. He swung the guard in time to block the attack of the other guard who had fired his weapon. Three cables struck Sage's victim and sent electrical shocks through his body. Sage threw the unconscious guard into the alarmed attacker. Sage then focused his efforts at the other two guards. He threw his elbow into the stomach of the attacker on his right then swung his fist into his nose. Using his other arm, Sage trapped the other guard in a headlock. He used his momentum to swing the attacker off his feet and into the other guard. With his attackers out of commission, Sage took the opportunity to escape. He stormed out of the office and into the small lobby. Suddenly the hatch to the elevator at the far end opened and three more guards came at him. Sage dropped to a slide on the sleek marble floor. With the force of his speed, he knocked over the guards. They collapsed as he rolled out of the way and jumped back onto his feet. Before the elevator doors closed, he squeezed through. Sage caught his breath as he slumped on the railing of the elevator. The car without his control already started its descent. Sage finally regained his senses though to his frustration, with great difficulty. He didn't understand, he had been through worse encounters than that before; he'd nearly been derezzed before. But he couldn't help but feel sick in his stomach. Though the time for squeamishness was gone. The elevator doors split again. Sage moved quickly, throwing himself on the left side of the door.

"What the, where is he?" the security guard said from outside. Sage waited quietly. From outside, he heard footsteps approaching the elevator. As soon as he thought the guard was close enough, Sage grabbed the shoulders of the guard and threw his knee into his stomach. Sage used the keeled guard as a shield, charging through the elevator and into the swarm of guards. As two came at him, Sage waited for their attack. The first swung a club which the program grabbed hold of and wrung it from the guards grip. As the second guard's club came down for a hit, Sage blocked it using the fore grip of the stolen club. He kicked out to the first guard, knocking him back. Turning back to the other guard, he head butted him, then used the club to take down another flanking guard. One by one they came after him, but Sage beat them down. Finally able to break away from the chaos, Sage took off again, charging through the doors. Not having time to stop and orient himself, Sage jumped shoulder first through the glass of the main doors. With a crash, Sage felt the cool air of the night and the hard impact on the concrete. In the distance, he heard the wailing of sirens. He rolled to his feet and kept running through the street, not taking time to look back and see the pursuing guards and the approaching red and blue lights. Sage had no idea where he was or where he was going. He kept running, trying to find a place to hide from the rapidly incoming sirens and lights. Suddenly, a vehicle of a familiar sort screeched past him. Sage recognized it as a motorbike. The white motorcycle quickly made a sharp turn, curving into Sage's direction. The rider, clad in black and wearing a full helmet leapt off the bike and charged at Sage. Before he could react, the rider tackled the program to the cold, hard ground. With grunts they both crashed, the rider on top, quickly getting on his knees and grasping Sage's wrists with a powerful grip. He flipped Sage onto his stomach and held him down with his knee.

"You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say or do can and will be held against you in a court of law." Sage rolled his eyes in frustration, he had no time for this. He struggled to regain control but the strength of the rider was too much. Soon, vehicles of the same décor as the motorcycle came to a halt, boxing Sage in. Red and blue lights flashed on the canopies and the sides all had the same decal, L.A.P.D. As another officer approached Sage and the rider, Sage felt the slap of cold metal closing around on his wrists.

"Nice takedown Rookie," the officer grinned. The rider's blue polarized visor faded to a transparent window, allowing for his face to be visible. He had a young yet strong face. Under his left deep brown eye was a small mole.

"Cal Tech football," the rider jeered. "He came from the tower?" he asked motioning to Sage as he lifted the program to his feet.

"Yep," the officer chuckled. "Now you can tell your daddy his computers are safe," he mocked. Sage looked to the rider in time to see his face redden in annoyance. He then looked around the dark street trying to think. He was in trouble now. Being arrested was no help to his plan. The officer had taken hold of Sage to guide him to an awaiting car. The red and blue lights flashed off everyone's faces; none of them were going to help him. As the officer pushed Sage into the back of the car then closed the door, Sage looked up through the window. Standing high above all other buildings was an exquisite skyscraper. The glass windows reflected the nightlife of the city. At the very top was a bold, lit sign, ENCOM. Sage realized that was the very tower he had escaped to. He didn't understand. Why did the portal bring him here? What did ENCOM Tower have that he needed?